Library of teambuilding games & icebreakers

How to play Don’t laugh

This activity is great if you have some especially funny team members. Start by having all attendees stand in a circle, and then have a volunteer stand in the middle and make some jokes. The attendees should not laugh, no matter how funny the person inside the circle is being. This is a great way to lighten the mood during heavier topics or serious meetings. One caveat: make sure that the “joker” is based purely on volunteers only. It’s not easy to stand in front of a group, particularly when it comes to trying to be funny. Not everyone will be up for this, so you need to know your team before you proceed.

How to play Desk decorating

Have staff transform their desks into works of art! Choose a theme, set a budget, and encourage everyone to get creative! Need some ideas? Try under the sea, Hollywood, outer space, haunted house, steampunk, eighties or nineties, or college dorm. Depending on the size of your office, the competition can be individual or team-based.

Make sure to set a time limit for decorating and then have a panel of judges who will walk around, view everyone’s set up, and pick a winner. You can get virtual employees in on the action by having them decorate their home office and take photos, or have everyone create new Zoom backgrounds.

How to play Trading post

Understanding pricing and its effects on supply and demand is a natural skill in the business world. This game can help your employees to focus on this area in new ways. You can do this game for any length of time, so it’s perfect for fitting into most agendas. Start with two groups, a pile of fake money, and some simple items to trade like paper clips or pencils. Each group should have their own money and supply of items. The groups will need to decide what things cost and come up with trade terms.

Then, they should get busy buying, selling, and trading. At the end of the exercise, bring everyone together and see who came out ahead. Why did one group do better than the other? What did everyone learn? Supply and demand are pretty simple economic concepts that most people know, but this is a fun reminder and refresher.

It’s time for a verbal showdown. In debate duel, two players go head-to-head, debating opposite sides of a topic. The audience votes on the winner based on persuasion, humor, or pure passion.

This group activity gets the conversation flowing and lets people flex their public speaking and persuasion muscles. Whether it’s serious or silly topics, debate duels are a great way to sharpen communication skills while having a few laughs. Plus, it’s the perfect opportunity to settle those ongoing office debates once and for all!

How to play:

• Select two participants to debate opposing sides of a topic.
• The audience listens and votes for the most convincing debater.
• The person with the most votes wins!

It’s charades, but with a twist. In mimic madness, one player acts out words or phrases from charades cards, while their teammates try to guess what they’re acting out—no talking allowed!

This classic team-building game is perfect for boosting communication skills and bringing out everyone’s inner performer. It’s a fun, energetic way to get people working together while adding some laughs to the office atmosphere.

How to play:

• One player selects a charades card and acts out the word or phrase.
• Teammates guess the word based on the actions—no talking allowed!
• The team with the most correct guesses wins.

How to play “Secret word” game

For this game, divide your group into two teams. Give each of them a different, “secret” word. The members of each team will try to incorporate the word into conversation as often as possible, without the other team guessing what their word is. For example, maybe one team is using the word “avocado”. Members would try to sneak in that word as often as possible, but organically, so it’s not easy to pick out. If someone orders a salad, a member might say “I love to put avocado in my salad.” Whichever team picks up on the other team’s secret word first, wins.Note: You obviously want to make sure the secret word is work appropriate!

On the subject of intimate activities, here’s another quick trust-building exercise that packs a punch. This time, all each team member has to do is maintain eye contact with a colleague for 60 seconds.

Give it a shot! Although it can feel a little awkward in the beginning, the simple act of looking into someone’s eyes can have profound effects. According to Healthline, for example, eye gazing has been shown to:

• Evoke feelings of love between strangers
• Increase the sense of connection between people (lifting the boundaries of “self” and “other”)
• Build trust between people (you’re more likely to believe someone who’s looking straight at you)

How to play Eye contact

This exercise could also be useful – not to mention challenging – for team members who are shy and struggle to hold people’s gaze. They should start to feel more comfortable making eye contact, which is a surefire sign of confidence.

At the end of the 60 seconds, follow the activity up with a discussion about the experience. What thoughts were they having throughout it? How did people feel? And how did they feel about the person they were looking at? Can they take anything from it to apply in the workplace?

Top tip: if you want to stretch this exercise out, you could have people repeat the process with a few additional teammates!

What you need:

• Stopwatch

How to host Talent show

For more silly fun, let employees know that your next happy hour will be a talent show. To execute this idea, you probably need to be in your own office space or another venue where you have the space to yourself. This is also a nice idea for a big outdoor space. Announce the talent show in advance and let everyone prepare an “act”. Or, for even more fun, put people on the spot during the event and see what everyone can come up with at the last minute.

You can encourage more cross-department collaboration by having people split up into groups for their talent act, doing things like a group poetry recitation or improv scene. If you want to ensure more networking, divide up the groups in advance.

How to play:

Challenge employees to write and perform parodies of popular songs with safety-themed lyrics. Record the performances and have a voting process to select the best ones. Offer prizes for the top performances.

This activity combines music and humor with important safety messages, making it memorable and entertaining. It encourages creativity and team spirit while reinforcing safety concepts in a fun way. Plus, who doesn’t love a good song parody?

“Hey! Team mate! Leave those unsafe things alone! All in all you’re just a ‘nother slip in the hall” 🎶

How to play Office “Great race”

Have you watched The Great Race? It’s a competition show where teams race around the world competing various tasks, finding out what their next task is when they complete one. You can create your own version in your office and have teams go on a quest before ending at a finish line. You can make a day of it, or break things up over a few weeks.

How to play Icebreaker bingo

This is one of the best games for lengthier introductions and learning more about the people around you. Most people are familiar with a bingo format, so it should be easy to play. You can use an online bingo card generator to come up with squares and randomize them. Squares can be anything from “owns a boat” to “has 20 years with the company” to “met a celebrity”. Another great thing about this icebreaker game is that there are actual winners - so if you have some fun prizes to hand out, this exercise is perfect.

As well as being a good energizing activity for large groups, Your North is a great exercise for sparking conversation about the importance of team alignment and direction. Even better, it’s also simple and fun to play.

Here’s how it works:

1. Ask the group to stand up, leaving plenty of space between them (everyone should be able to put their arms out to the side without touching anyone or anything)
2. Show the team where north is (this could really be north if you have a compass on your phone, but feel free to make it up otherwise!)
3. Tell everyone to cover their eyes with their left hand and spin around 10 times, keeping their eyes covered the whole time
4. When they’re done, ask everyone to stretch out their arm and point toward where they believe north is now (their eyes should still be shut)
5. The team can then open their eyes to see the many different directions in which people are pointing

How to play Mirror game

Two people stand across from each other and mirror each other's movements, trying to stay in sync.

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How to play Simple stretching

Sometimes, just moving your body and getting some good, deep breaths is enough. Several times throughout the day, use the natural breaks that occur to have everyone stand up and stretch. If you want to be more formal, you could have a team leader facilitate some group stretching or even introduce a short yoga session. As long as you can get people’s bodies moving, it’s a great thing. Plus - it’s free and no special supplies are needed!

Here’s an ice-breaking, energizing, and entertaining game that’s great for small teams of people who know each other already. Expect it to open up funny conversations and help everyone learn more about their colleagues in the process.

How to play Most likely to

Super simple, you play in a circle and take turns asking “who is most likely to”, followed by a specific trait or activity. For instance, Sally might ask the group:

• “Who’s most likely to bungee jump off a bridge?” Or
• “Who’s most likely to play a prank on the boss?” Or
• “Who’s most likely to be a night owl?”

Each team member then votes for whoever they think is most likely to do that activity or possess the trait. To spice things up, you could say that the participant with the most votes must perform a light-hearted punishment, such as making everyone a cup of coffee or handling the next tricky customer!

Soccer was the first team sport to be introduced to the Olympic games in 1900, so in the spirit of teamwork, it’s a great game to integrate into your Office Olympics.

How to play Office soccer

You can use desks, or even chairs set apart from one another, to serve as the goal.

If you’re pressed for space, you can play Desk Top Soccer. Find a tabletop with enough length to set up two goals and crumple some paper to create a soccer ball.

This event allows coworkers to team up and play a friendly match of office soccer, promoting play and teamwork.

How to play Broom Hockey

Broom Hockey is just what it sounds like! But, instead of playing with a puck and sticks, you grab some brooms from the cleaning closet and make a puck out of paper. Roll it up into a tight ball so that it rolls smoothly in the direction you want.

It’s best to have a designated open area to play this game, so use any break rooms or conference rooms, using the underside of a desk or a trash bin as your goal marker.

An obstacle course is another crowd-pleaser that’s as versatile as relay races! It’s also a fantastic physical team-building activity that gets everyone moving, laughing, and working together.

From crawling under chairs and jumping over cones to walking along zigzagging stretches of rope and squeezing through hula hoops, you can create an endless list of obstacles for participants to navigate, all while racing to the finish. The result is a fun-filled and exciting event with a nice dose of friendly competition thrown in.

Here are a few additional DIY obstacles course ideas to consider:

• Hang inflated balloons at different levels under a table – people must crawl underneath without touching them
• Make a laser-style course out of pieces of string for people to climb through
• Set up cardboard boxes with holes to throw beanbags into
• Create makeshift tunnels to crawl through by hanging old bed sheets and blankets over rows of chairs
• Lay hula hoops along the ground for people to hop between
• Lay rope on the ground in different patterns to walk along and test people’s balance
• Create “stepping stones” using circles of rope and play “the floor is lava” – if they miss a stone and touch the ground outside, they go back to the start

How to play Stranger conversation practice

Boost team confidence by practicing talking to people you don’t know well. Pair people up in groups of two and then give them a few prompts. Their objective is to learn this information from each other using a natural dialogue. For example, maybe the goal is to learn about their favorite international cuisine, or their favorite place to vacation. It’s great practice for having an objective in mind and then being creative about how to get there.

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In sketch & guess, one person draws a word or phrase on a whiteboard, while their teammates try to guess it within a time limit. The quicker the guesses, the better! It’s like Pictionary, but perfect for office shenanigans.

This game is great for getting the creative juices flowing and injecting some energy into the workday.

How to play:

• One player draws a word or phrase on a whiteboard.
• Teammates guess the word within a set time limit.
• The team with the most correct guesses in the fastest time wins!

Find more team building activities for small groups to bring creativity and collaboration into your office.

Where Do You Stand? Is a simple energizing game that’s perfect for large groups and easy to set up. All you need is an open space and a handful of ‘this or that’ questions.

Great for: Energization, session icebreaker

Duration: 10–15 minutes

You’ll need: Cones to divide the room

How to play:

• Divide the room in half with a line of small cones and then ask your group to stand more or less along the line.
• Ask a ‘this or that’ question to the group such as “pizza or pasta?” and assign an answer to each side of the room. For example, if a player wants to answer “pizza”, they need to run to the left side of the room.
• Keep the energy up by asking questions in quick succession. The idea is to get your group moving and acting impulsively.
• By the end of the game, your employees will know a little bit more about their colleagues’ preferences.

Explanation:

‍Office and remote workers team up to match pairs of items. Remote workers describe their items, and office workers try to match them without seeing them.

Remote participants start by picking an item from their home (like a weird-shaped mug or a funky pen), but instead of showing it, they give the office team a detailed description. The in-office team then tries to find a matching item in the office based on that description alone. It’s all about great communication and attention to detail. Once both teams think they’ve found a match, they reveal the items on camera to see if they actually paired them correctly!

It’s a light-hearted, fun way to boost listening skills and teamwork between remote and in-office employees.

How to play “If I were”…

One of the easiest games to play, this activity allows players to describe themselves in different situations. Simply read the prompts out loud and give everyone a chance to respond. Some things you can suggest are:

• If I were a country, I’d be….
• If I were a song, I’d be…
• If I were a food, I’d be…
• If I were a brand, I’d be…
• If I were a cocktail, I’d be…
• If I were a wild animal, I’d be…
• If I were a mythical creature, I’d be…

How to play Live “Price is right”

If you’re familiar with the classic show, you know how into it people can get! Try hosting a variation of the show at work. Split everyone into two teams and have everyone guess prices on things from around the office. You can use items ranging from an executive desk to snacks in the kitchen.

Make sure you know the real prices so that you can fairly determine the winners each round. Bonus points for having fun props like large cards to write guesses on, or nameplates to display team names. You’ll have to give some consideration to just where to host this game - the space needs to fit everyone and also have room for bringing in the items.